European Citizens’ Worries and Self-Responsibility towards Climate Change

Abstract

Attitudes and perceptions about climate change (CC) are crucial to public engagement and support in the promotion of mitigating actions and sustainable lifestyles embracing the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. This study aimed to investigate how worried are European citizens about CC, and what is their willingness to assume self-responsibility in its mitigation. We used the European Social Survey, namely the answers to the questions “How worried are you about climate change?” and “To what extent do you feel a personal responsibility to try to CC?” and have related them with demography and individual perception of the society and its policies. We fit two statistical models to each of the questions studied and found the following: Model 1—people that trust in scientists are more worried about CC, people satisfied with the national government are more worried about CC, women are more worried about CC than men, and older and more educated people are also more worried about CC; Model 2—Women have higher levels of self-responsibility, people that trust in scientists feel more responsibility when satisfied with the economy and the health system of the country, and older people that trust in scientists also have more responsibility.

The society of Information and the European citizens’ perception of climate change: natural or anthropological causes

“…It has been previously reported that, in Europe, concern and responsibility for CC are more intense by women than men (Mata et al 2023), which can be explained by the "conservative male" effect, or the higher frequency of male conservationists, as discussed by (Jylhä et al 2016). In this study, the probability of a European citizen perceiving CC causes as natural processes is higher men than in women.…”

European citizens’ stance on limiting energy use for climate change mitigation

“…Worry motivates cognitive and analytical processing of risk perception, more intensely. Mata et al (2023) found the same in relation to European citizens.…”

“…Studies have also shown that individuals with a higher perception of the CC risks, and more worried about the CC consequences, incite change in behaviors and increase their willingness to pay for CC mitigation ( Brulle, Carmichael & Jenkins, 2012 ; Mata et al, 2023 ; Mayer & Smith, 2019 ). Other studies ( Leiserowitz, 2006 ; O’Connor, Bard & Fisher, 1999 ; Smith & Leiserowitz, 2014 ) have shown the relationship between worried individuals about CC and the belief in the adoption of CC mitigating measures.…”

“…This awareness can be passed on from generation to generation, creating a society more aware and responsible towards the environment ( Dwivedi et al, 2022 ). Such awareness is essential to ensure the long-term sustainability of our planet ( Mata et al, 2023 ). On the other hand, the stance of European citizens can have a significant international impact.…”

“…The stance of European citizens on limiting the use of energy reflects the growing awareness and urgency towards the climate crisis ( Hoffmann et al, 2022 ; Mata et al, 2023 ). This sense of urgency is crucial to maintain the momentum necessary to combat CC.…”